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Focus on Polish Design
After completing his studies at the Pratt Institute in New York and the RCA in London, product designer Tomek Rygalik returned to his hometown of Łódź in 2006 and to the nascent Polish contemporary design scene. He is one of Poland’s most internationally renowned contemporary designers and as such has been instrumental in raising the profile of his country’s design and furniture industry, as well as investing time and effort in helping the next generation of young Polish designers develop their own voice and qualities.
In 2012 he joined forces with his wife, the food designer Gosia Rygalik, and together they run their Studio Rygalik from Warsaw. For our Poland issue, uncube asked the Rygaliks to focus on four key organisations, institutions or companies who, in their view, are pioneers in the contemporary Polish design landscape.Photo courtesy Studio Rygalik
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The Adam Mickiewicz Institute
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The Adam Mickiewicz Institute, also known as Culture.pl, actively promotes Polish culture abroad in many ways: by organising and co-funding exhibitions and cultural events worldwide, as well as by supporting things like publications and film productions. Design, along with other artistic and creative disciplines such as film, music, theatre and photography, is one of their main areas of focus. One of their biggest design related initiatives in 2014 was the launch of our own curatorial project: NASZ Collection at WantedDesign in New York.
Studio Regalik objects for the NASZ collection. (Photo: Ernest Winczyk, courtesy Studio Rygalik)
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VZOR
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Polish design history has many icons that in the past could never be produced, because of the political situation. They just didn’t fit into the communist ethos. Vzor is a furniture brand that was established in 2012 in order to reissue iconic Polish furniture designs. They began by introducing the cult RM58 armchair, designed in 1958 by Roman Modzelewski. The brand’s aim is to bring fantastic designs from the fifties and sixties to the market – adapting them to serial production and reinterpreting them with modern technologies.
Roman Modzelewski and his original RM58 armchair and the Vzor re-issue. (Photos courtesy VZOR)
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Łódź Design Festival
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For some reason, Poland’s main design event doesn’t take place in either the capital city, or alongside any major trade fairs. In 2007 an annual design festival was founded in the culturally vibrant city of Łódź. Since then the event has grow continuously and gained importance both in Poland, and internationally. The programme is always based on a specific theme with curated exhibitions and an open-call exhibition complemented by a diverse range of events, including lectures and parties.
Tabanda’s “Strefa Testów/Test Zone” shown in Łódź, 2014. (Photo courtesy Łódź Design Festival)
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furniture manufacturers turned furniture brands
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Not many people know that Poland is one of the biggest manufacturers of furniture in the world. This leading position, however, is one of sheer volume of export (calculated in kilograms), not turnover. Polish companies produce for brands all over the world, including Ikea and Vitra. A few pioneering manufacturers are realising that they need to shift from OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) to OBMs (original brand manufacturers) to keep in step with Poland's economic growth. Three of these brands are: the upholstered furniture manufacturer Comforty, the office furniture makers Profim and the contract seating manufacturer Paged. Studio Rygalik has designed furniture for all of them.
Paged “K2” family designed by Tomek Rygalik. (Photo courtesy Paged)
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»Tradition is a dare for innovation.«
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